Racism. It's a hot-button word even though many disagree on exactly what constitutes racism. Few would check the "yes" box if directly asked if they are racist, so more circumspect methods must be used to determine racist inclinations.

Google to the rescue! The cyber conglomerate collects information about users of its search services including location (determined by mobile device location data or IP address for desktops) and search history.

Google social scientists have coordinated with academic researchers to determine where in the country the highest and lowest amounts of racism are. They used the advertising industry's 206 Designated Market Areas and studied certain uses of the N-word in searches. Reliable information was gleaned for 196 DMAs.

Both the Philadelphia area (which includes Lehigh and Northampton counties), and the Wilkes Barre-Scranton area (which includes Carbon, Monroe and Schuylkill counties along with parts north) rank among the most racist areas in the country.

So what? It's embarrassing, but is it also unhealthy?

A recent paper published by epidemiologists and social scientists led by David Chae of the University of Maryland shows a correlation between racist attitudes and mortality among black people. The paper, “Association Between an Internet-Based Measure of Area Racism and Black Mortality,” is available from PLOS.org.

Correlation is not causation, but even when all other factors were taken into consideration, black people die at unexpectedly higher rates – between 6 percent and 8 percent higher – in areas where racist attitudes are also high.

The researchers noted there were “robust associations between area racism and heart disease, cancer, and stroke, leading causes of death among blacks.” They also note that long-term exposure to social stressors such as racism have a “weathering” affect on all the body’s systems. But they are quick to caution leaping to conclusions and urge that these findings should be used to promote a more serious discussion of the pernicious nature of racism on minority populations.